29. Laura
laura
. . .
A s the days passed and I got back into my work schedule, things didn’t seem as crazy. Having Harley in my life… changed me.
I didn’t freak out about deadlines anymore. The stress from all my other clients went from a constant in my mind to just an annoying buzzing in my ear.
I stopped trying to rationalize my actions—or hers.
There was no need. Her… hobby… was a risk to both of us, but just like most things in my career, it was a calculated one. The payout was worth it when it meant all the nuances in my clients’ and my life disappeared out of thin air.
I knew the legal system like the back of my hand and, more than that, I knew the corrupt and dirty individuals in it as well. I could predict them and anticipate the actions they would take.
I wouldn’t let anything bad happen to us. I would make it safe for us.
More importantly, I had to look out for Harley.
I had thought that trying to control her would be an issue, but I had been looking at it the wrong way. She was never out of control. She was as calculating and careful as I was, and now that her darkness had an outlet—well, other than in the bedroom—she was absolutely thriving.
News had spread of our relationship after we came back from Hawaii. There were pictures of us looking far too close to be anything but together on magazine covers and gossip sites.
I had never wanted to be famous. Maybe some small part of me wanted it for bragging purposes, but overall, I knew it would be a nuisance more than anything else.
But suddenly, people were wondering exactly who I was.
Articles about me and what I did for a living were published—some of my clients even forwarded them to me as their idea of a joke.
People in general, and her fans specifically, wondered how we met.
They speculated. And the quieter we were about it, the crazier the assumptions got.
It worked well for Harley’s purposes.
The media never stopped talking about it. Or her. Or the new movie.
And then when the news hit about her manager… Well, she ate that up. Along with the lawsuit.
Her manager’s company put out a statement. Apparently, Harley hadn’t been the only one getting her wages slashed by Julian, which led to a very long list of suspects when they found out the man was missing.
Of course Harley and I got called in, but they had nothing on us. After all, the footage from the hotel had been deleted. Ours, at least; his mistress’s boyfriend, on the other hand, had been seen going into his room and spending an absurd amount of time in there.
And, on top of that, who would spend all that time putting together a lawsuit to simply make the guy disappear? It didn’t make sense, did it?
It all worked out in our favor. The boyfriend was swiftly arrested while the world watched the fallout. He was set to go to trial soon. He maintained his innocence, but the evidence was damning .
Especially the murder weapon found with his DNA on it.
I had no idea what he had done when he found the dead body, but whatever it was, it solidified our case.
And Harley and I were fine.
“Maybe you’re having too much fun with this,” I said, noticing Harley’s posture. Her shoulders were relaxed, there was an easy smile on her face, and she sipped her glass of wine like the police weren’t currently all over her latest crime scene according to the news outlets.
“Too much?” she asked and looked at the red wine under the dim candlelight. “No such thing. This is the first time in a long time that I’ve felt in control of it.”
The apartment was mostly dark, except for the fragrant rose-scented candles scattered throughout. Our dinner plates were empty and all that was left was the half-finished bottle of wine between us.
Harley insisted that even a normal dinner needed to be romantic, so she always set it all up. She bought flowers, somehow always knowing the color of my shoes so she could match them.
Was there surveillance on me? Probably. Did I mind it? Not really. Especially when I found myself wishing I had cameras on her whenever she was set to film on location somewhere and I couldn’t tag along.
She even had a private chef come in and make us a delectable steak dinner this time. I rolled my eyes at her for it but didn’t fight her.
My chest still warmed at her gesture. My skin still heated. As much as my mouth and mind tried to deny it, her actions made me swoon over and over again.
Maybe she’s right. Maybe we were meant to be.
As fucked-up and twisted as it was, she introduced me to a new side of myself. Or maybe simply reached in and pulled out the darkness that already existed in me.
“Did you normally feel out of control when you felt the need to kill people?” I asked and took a sip of my own wine. The bitterness spread across my tongue, pairing well with the remnants of our dinner.
“I thought you were my lawyer, not my therapist,” she teased with a smirk.
“But yes, sometimes. Especially when my schedule prohibited it. Without you, the risk would be much higher. I could have been caught at any moment if I wasn’t careful.
You don’t know how close I was to killing Julian before you acted as a diffuser.
You’re the only one who can keep the monster at bay. ”
I leaned forward with a smirk.
“I think I like the monster.”
The turning of my apartment lock had both Harley and me turning to look at the door.
Panic rose in me. Who the fuck could be trying to get in? And why now?
We were on one of the top floors. No one should have been able to get up here, and if they were, it was definitely intentional.
Whoever it was was having a hard time opening the door and I was dazed enough not to notice Harley standing up.
My eyes shifted to her as I got up as well. She didn’t meet my gaze, merely picked up the abandoned steak knife and stalked to the door.
I had never once thought of what I would do in case anyone tried to break in. I paid a lot for this place, and the security that came with it. Breaks-ins were the last of my worries. Especially with Harley here.
With her, I had nothing to be afraid of. She would protect me.
But therein lay the problem.
Harley wouldn’t just protect me. She would kill whoever was behind that door.
“Wait, Harley?—”
My words died on my tongue when a familiar face peeked through the door. Lenard.
What the actual fuck?
I hadn’t seen or heard from him since I kicked him out after that stupid proposal. He hadn’t even crossed my mind, if I was being honest. Between my work, Harley, and us, my time was all taken.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I hissed and maneuvered in front of Harley, pushing her back. She allowed me to do it, but stayed close behind. The brush of her body against my back sent a boost of confidence through me.
I couldn’t tell what emotion was stronger. The rage I felt that Lenard would still show up to my house after I wanted nothing to do with him, the fear that Harley would shove that knife in his throat, or how much I wanted her to.
“I just want to talk,” he said, his eyes taking in the state of the apartment and the person behind me. “But it would seem you are otherwise… engaged. ”
I let out a scoff.
“Don’t lie and say you haven’t seen the news. You and I both know that’s probably why you’re here.”
He held up his hands, giving me a very fake sheepish smile.
For a prosecutor, he has a really shitty poker face.
“I wanted to see if it’s true,” he admitted. “After it came out, your parents have been messaging me nonstop asking me to save their poor little Laurie from making a horrible mistake?—”
“Why are you still in contact with them?” I hissed. White hot anger coursed through my veins. “I told you I didn’t want?—”
“Anything to do with them or for them to know where you are. I know.” He lowered his hands and gave me a pitiful look. “But they’re worried about you. Especially now that’s you’ve picked up some wannabe movie star?—”
Harley suddenly moved to stand in front of me, her free hand coming up behind her so she could pull me close. Like a shield.
“You are breaking and entering,” Harley deadpanned, her tone deadly. “You have thirty seconds to vacate the property, or I will be forced to make you. Self-defense and all that.”
“Someone is reading up on their law books,” Lenard said with a laugh. “Is that what you do when you’re holed up here and Laura’s done with you? ”
“Twenty seconds,” she warned.
She is going to kill him… And am I going to let her?
This wouldn’t look good. Not to any jury. Not when?—
“But I have a key.” Lenard held up the small metal object for her to see. One I had definitely not given him. The prick. “So no, not breaking and entering. Nor am I a threat to your life?—”
Harley let go of me and stalked forward. Lenard’s eyes widened, and for the first time, his instincts seemed to kick in. He turned, ready to run out of the house.
But Harley was too fast. Too fucking fast.
She reached him in seconds and stabbed the knife into him.
Right in his fucking back.